I bought my Saxo from new in 1998 and stupidly sold it in 2008 thinking it was about time I upgraded again. The car was economical, reliable and had a CD player - a big WOW factor back then!
With regular servicing every 6000 miles this car ran like a dream with only the routine maintenance items needing attention eg brake pads,tyres, light bulbs etc. I kept my little Citroen Saxo on the road in a seaside town and there was still no rust when I sold it., a decision I now regret.
I've given it 5*'s on everything except comfort. The reason for this is it's size. A little more width would have made it 5*. If you have two large(ish) people in the front you will be grabbing knees when you change gear!
I do remember the position of the foot pedals being slightly odd when I first got the car but this something you very quickly get used to.
Overall I can't praise this car enough for a small runaround.
The absolute BEST thing about the Saxo is that it's just so simple, but has lots of oomph for what it is. There's so little to go wrong, all I've had to do with it is tyres and a bit of welding on the underside. ooo actually the alternator did need changing once, but that's it... ah and a windscreen wiper motor, but that really is it lol.
I learned to drive in this, and it was second hand then, with probably about 60 thousand miles on the clock. I haven't really used it for long trips that much so it's had quite an easy life with me. I did 'crash' it once at about 5 miles an hour, into a pillar in a car park, but it just sort of bounced. There's a bit of a dent in the bumper from it but no other damage I can see. Maybe it'll come up in the next MOT!
Next fantastic thing about the Saxo (there are so many) is that it's really nice and cheap to run. It uses so little petrol, and the bills for tax and insurance are nice and low. I am a girl though, dunno how it stacks up for boys cos I know a lot of boy racers have 'modified' Saxos and tend to wrap them round trees a lot :p
There's a fair bit of space inside, considering that it's a diddy little car. I often get three mates in it for nights out, and the same mates have gone away for a long weekend in it with all our stuff in the boot. It didn't seem to have any trouble with that. I suppose I wouldn't wanna be moving house with it though, it is quite low really, and the seats just fold down, they don't disappear in a clever way like they do in a lot of modern cars.
I suppose the only other down side for me is that it hasn't got power steering, but then I've never had that so I don't know what I'm missing. I have had a go in my mum's new C3 and that just seemed sort of too complicated, over designed! I love the Pax because it's really simple and easy to drive, easy to fix, easy to look after, easy to love! There's just something.... er joyous! about it, just love to get in it and drive. I can't explain, like my mum's car felt all sterile and hushed, the Saxo has a personality! Like you can feel what it wants - lol I probly sound like a right weirdo now.. well it's not for everyone but, just be warned, it's easy to fall for, and you'll be hanging on to it for dear life after that!
The Citroen Saxo was my first car and I have fond memories of her. It was a great drive, nippy, fun and sporty, and it looked great, nice and compact. Looking back on it, however, I have less fond memories.
The problem with the Citroen Saxo is that it's a bit impractical. It's very cramped, and it doesn't have much going on. There is very little in the way of safety equipment or extra kit. The dash and all the interiors look fairly cheap and tacky. It's not very comfortable either. It simply seems as if it hasn't really had much thought put into it.
The Saxo was good first car but I wouldn't want one now. I was lucky enough to have a post-2000 version, too, as those produced before then have very little going for them. On the surface the Citroen Saxo is a pretty good motor, but scratch away and you'll see it's not really good enough for a grown-up.
I have a Citroen Saxo, and while it may get mocked for being really small, I think it's perfect for a small family. Its boot isn't massive but it can easily cope with the weekly shop, and yes, if you're 6 foot tall you're probably going to struggle for interior space, but I'm not 6 foot tall so it's fine.
I have a standard model, so it isn't fast - in fact it's very slow. But that's just fine by me as I have children. The kids are comfortable enough in the back - despite the size issues.
Economy wise, it's bloody great! Because it's so slow, you get excellent petrol figures - which is nice with the current pricing of the stuff!!
Overall, I'd say it's the perfect car for a small family who are looking to keep costs down.
This was the car I bought when I passed my test whilst at college, and I do have to say that I rather liked it. Even though it was only a 1.0 litre engine it didn't do to badly, it was always quick off the mark but did struggle over taking and getting up to a decent speed on the motorway.
But at that age I didn't do much motorway driving so it never really bothered me. As it was only a small car the steering and handling was quite light unless I had a car full. Other plus points were that I never seemed to put petrol in, it just lasted forever and the insurance was also low despite being a new driver.
I only had one major problem and that was the gearbox needed replacing but again that was probably down to my bad driving at the time.
Wondering why I got a rude boy's car? Well, when I was younger and naive, I fell in love with a racer boy and he drove a Saxo.
It is definitely not an ideal car but price and value adds up.
Very common car for modifications.
Easy to handle, fast and fun to drive in, especially if you are with a cute guy in it.